Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

The bestselling writer who took us on a cross-country journey to reveal his long love affair with chocolate in Candyfreak returns with his second accomplished short-story collection. Once again he has produced a funny, bracing, sometimes shocking, always imaginative collection of stories and characters: a young magazine editor enduring a bizarre blind date; a couple who are sure that they have been given implants by space aliens; a young boy desperate to please his father with his baseball prowess, who ends up fatally wounding another boy during a game; a creative-writing teacher struggling to resist his seductive student.

With tremendous heart and an unmatchable wit, Almond proves — as he did with the acclaimed My Life in Heavy Metal and the bestselling Candyfreak — to be one of the most original writers of our time.

Review:

"In this sexy, fast-paced second collection of stories, Almond, author of My Life in Heavy Metal and the nonfiction Candyfreak, takes on love and loss around the turn of the millennium, showing how average people living in big cities and university towns tackle heartbreak with humor. The title story traces the flailing love between a magazine editor and a commitment-phobic medical resident who seems too good to be true. In 'Appropriate Sex,' a refreshing addition to the growing genre of stories about the goings-on in undergraduate writing workshops, a writer-in-residence is treated to a parade of students who 'discourse on Tristam Shandy,' seduce him and get him stoned in the same office hour. 'A Happy Dream' portrays the lucky outcome of a blind date on which Kate, a bike messenger masquerading as a chimney sweep, forces Henry, a cautious sous-chef, to think on his feet. While struggling with his own recent breakup, the narrator of 'Skull' listens as his friend confesses how he and his new girlfriend are finding love in unlikely ways that involve her prosthetic eye. Almond doesn't dig too deep or offer up grand theories about romantic love, but his easy, natural storytelling and consoling reminders that intimacy is awkward and messy will carry readers happily along. Forecast: Almond scored a surprise hit with Candyfreak, his confessional tour of candy factories. This laid-back follow-up delivers more guilty pleasure and should attract — and satisfy — Almond's new fans. Author tour." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Review:

"Almond...has a nice treasure trove of ideas and a smart way with his characters, but he always seems to lose interest just as the going gets good....A distractingly entertaining second collection, nimbly executed." Kirkus Reviews

Review:

"Almond proves himself to be just as irreverent, audacious, and amusing in his new set of stories, but his subjects are more diverse....As out there as Almond gets, he never loses his down-to-earth tenderness and agile delicacy." Booklist

Review:

"[Almond] throw[s] in enough sex, wit, and brutal honesty to revive interest in the short story format....Almond's stories are often bittersweet and bordering on the absurd....They are also wildly inventive and highly recommended..." Library Journal

Review:

"His words are punchy and the stories really move, thanks to the entertaining subject material....Almond's stories are always interesting, and his writing is passionate." San Antonio Express-News

Review:

"With the possible exception of masters such as Richard Ford, nobody today is writing better short fiction." Seattle Times

Synopsis:

The bestselling writer who took readers on a cross-country journey that revealed his long love affair with chocolate in Candyfreak has produced a funny, bracing, sometimes shocking, always imaginative collection of stories and characters for this new compilation.

Synopsis:

Steve Almond, the man whose candy jones fueled the bestseller Candyfreak, returns with a collection of stories that both seals his reputation as a master of the modern form and risks getting him arrested. The cast of characters in The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories includes a wealthy family certain they have been abducted by space aliens, a sexy magazine editor who falls for a worldclass cad, and a beleaguered dentist who refuses to read his best friends novel. Michael Jackson and Abraham Lincoln make cameos, as do a variety of desperate and beautiful loonies, all of whom are laid bare, often literally. In these twelve stories, Almond refuses to let his characters off the hook, or to abandon them, until we have seen the full measure of ourselves within their struggle.

About the Author

Steve Almond is the author of the acclaimed story collection My Life in Heavy Metal. He has published stories and poems in publications ranging from Playboy to Tin House to Zoetrope, and they have been widely anthologized. He is a regular commentator on the NPR affiliate WBUR in Boston, teaches creative writing at Boston College, and has eaten at least one piece of candy every single day of his entire life.

What Our Readers Are Saying

Average customer rating based on 1 comment:

carolyn espe, February 8, 2007 (view all comments by carolyn espe)
Steve Almond does it again!! Brilliantly crafting these stories, Almond tugs at your very inner self; you sense heartstrings unfelt before. In this collection of works, Almond shows "realness" in quirky characters dealing with their interesting situations, and you just want to cry because you know you've been there. Well-written and hysterically funny, The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories rocks American culture with incredible honesty and unfound clarity!

Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No(8 of 18 readers found this comment helpful)

"Publishers Weekly Review"
by Publishers Weekly,
"In this sexy, fast-paced second collection of stories, Almond, author of My Life in Heavy Metal and the nonfiction Candyfreak, takes on love and loss around the turn of the millennium, showing how average people living in big cities and university towns tackle heartbreak with humor. The title story traces the flailing love between a magazine editor and a commitment-phobic medical resident who seems too good to be true. In 'Appropriate Sex,' a refreshing addition to the growing genre of stories about the goings-on in undergraduate writing workshops, a writer-in-residence is treated to a parade of students who 'discourse on Tristam Shandy,' seduce him and get him stoned in the same office hour. 'A Happy Dream' portrays the lucky outcome of a blind date on which Kate, a bike messenger masquerading as a chimney sweep, forces Henry, a cautious sous-chef, to think on his feet. While struggling with his own recent breakup, the narrator of 'Skull' listens as his friend confesses how he and his new girlfriend are finding love in unlikely ways that involve her prosthetic eye. Almond doesn't dig too deep or offer up grand theories about romantic love, but his easy, natural storytelling and consoling reminders that intimacy is awkward and messy will carry readers happily along. Forecast: Almond scored a surprise hit with Candyfreak, his confessional tour of candy factories. This laid-back follow-up delivers more guilty pleasure and should attract — and satisfy — Almond's new fans. Author tour." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

"Review"
by Kirkus Reviews,
"Almond...has a nice treasure trove of ideas and a smart way with his characters, but he always seems to lose interest just as the going gets good....A distractingly entertaining second collection, nimbly executed."

"Review"
by Booklist,
"Almond proves himself to be just as irreverent, audacious, and amusing in his new set of stories, but his subjects are more diverse....As out there as Almond gets, he never loses his down-to-earth tenderness and agile delicacy."

"Review"
by Library Journal,
"[Almond] throw[s] in enough sex, wit, and brutal honesty to revive interest in the short story format....Almond's stories are often bittersweet and bordering on the absurd....They are also wildly inventive and highly recommended..."

"Review"
by San Antonio Express-News,
"His words are punchy and the stories really move, thanks to the entertaining subject material....Almond's stories are always interesting, and his writing is passionate."

"Review"
by Seattle Times,
"With the possible exception of masters such as Richard Ford, nobody today is writing better short fiction."

"Synopsis"
by Ingram,
The bestselling writer who took readers on a cross-country journey that revealed his long love affair with chocolate in Candyfreak has produced a funny, bracing, sometimes shocking, always imaginative collection of stories and characters for this new compilation.

"Synopsis"
by Firebrand,

Steve Almond, the man whose candy jones fueled the bestseller Candyfreak, returns with a collection of stories that both seals his reputation as a master of the modern form and risks getting him arrested. The cast of characters in The Evil B.B. Chow and Other Stories includes a wealthy family certain they have been abducted by space aliens, a sexy magazine editor who falls for a worldclass cad, and a beleaguered dentist who refuses to read his best friends novel. Michael Jackson and Abraham Lincoln make cameos, as do a variety of desperate and beautiful loonies, all of whom are laid bare, often literally. In these twelve stories, Almond refuses to let his characters off the hook, or to abandon them, until we have seen the full measure of ourselves within their struggle.

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